Best Spices for Skin Care

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Spices have a long history of being traded and used as medicine or even as a way to communicate with the gods. Now, they're mostly known for flavoring your curry or cappuccino. But many of these fragrant botanicals are also powerful antioxidants that can help prevent premature aging and skin damage.

Here's how five natural ingredients can give your beauty routine a boost, and the products in which you'll find them.

Fennel

This root, with its slight licorice flavor, is especially good for sensitive skin; it decreases redness and irritation and can help minimize sensitivity caused by sun exposure, says dermatologist Leslie Baumann of Miami Beach, Florida.

Clove

Dentists traditionally have used clove oil as a numbing agent. Applied to skin, it has antimicrobial properties that make it an effective cleanser, says Valori Treloar, a board-certified dermatologist in Wellesley, Massachusetts. The inviting scent is another bonus.